Knee: The knee is a joint which has three parts. The thigh bone (the femur) meets the large shin bone (the tibia) to form the main knee joint. This joint has an inner (medial) and an outer (lateral) compartment. The kneecap (the patella) joins the femur to form a third joint, called the patellofemoral joint. The patella protects the front of the knee joint.
Two major areas in the brain affected by autism are Wernicke's Area and Broca's Area (Carlson, 1999). Some other areas studied shown to be affected in autistic patients include the limbic system, cerebellum and association cortex.
In addition, many genes linked to autism are known to affect the development or function of brain synapses. Indeed, the idea that individuals with autism have excess synapses has been proposed before. To test this hypothesis, Columbia researcher Guomei Tang analyzed brain tissue from 26 children and young adults affected by autism. Thirteen of the children were between the ages of 2 and 9 when they died.